The Future of Consumerist

Over the last twelve years, Consumerist has been a steadfast proponent and voice on behalf of consumers, from exposing shady practices by secretive cable companies to pushing for action against dodgy payday lenders. Now, we’re joining forces with Consumer Reports, our parent organization, to cultivate the next generation of consumer advocacy.

Stay tuned as Consumerist’s current and future content finds its home as a part of the Consumer Reports brand. In the meantime, you can access existing Consumerist content below, and we encourage you to visit Consumer Reports to read the latest consumer news.

No more waiting for items to go on sale at JCPenney, as the company has announced it’ll be marking all of its merchandise down by at least 40%. The move is part of a new pricing plan aimed at getting customers into its doors more regularly.

After the initial markdown, the Associated Press (via USA Today) says JCPenney will be rolling out a three-tiered approach to its pricing of items starting Feb. 1, to replace the hundreds of sales they used to have every year. There will be the “Every Day” low prices daily, the “Monthly Value” discounts and “Best Price” clearance deals twice a month on the first and third Fridays of each month, when many shoppers get paid.

The idea is, if the store’s pricing is predictable enough, customers will be able to rely on getting a deal there no matter what, and keep coming back to spend. It could discourage bargain-hunters always on the look out for a particular sale, however. No coupons necessary when there’s always cheaper prices — where’s the challenge in that?

The new pricing plan is part of Penney’s new CEO, Ron Johnson’s plan to attract new shoppers and bolster business. In the past, the department store hasn’t had much luck with the younger age range of consumers, and many in the industry see it as simply “boring.”